The evangelization through medical practices of Spanish Franciscans in 17th century China: Pedro de la Piñuela and Bencao Bu
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3989/hs.2025.1077Keywords:
Bencao Bu, Pedro de la Piñuela, Franciscan mission, evangelization through medical practices, narrative modeAbstract
During the 16th and 17th centuries, Catholic missionaries in China adopted the strategy of cultural accommodation to integrate themselves into local society. In addition to advancing their missionary work, this approach also facilitated a broad cultural exchange between the East and the West. Notably, this strategy was not exclusive to the Jesuits; Spanish Franciscans also employed it, with preaching through medical practices serving as one of its prominent components. This article aims to investigate Bencao Bu [本草補, Supplement to Chinese Materia Medica], a pharmaceutical work in Chinese by Pedro de la Piñuela [石鐸琭, Shi Duolu]. After a brief introduction of the work and its author, the article analyzes the narrative mode employed in Bencao Bu, drawing insights from both Chinese and Western medical ideological perspectives, while also evaluating its influence on the traditional Chinese medicine and the Franciscan mission in China.
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Funding data
National Social Science Fund of China
Grant numbers 23CWW003
Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades
Grant numbers PID2023-146712NB-I00
